WASHINGTON — President Bush said Friday that Libya (search) would allow international inspectors to check for all major weapons in the country, a step he said would be "of great importance" in stopping weapons of mass destruction in a global fight against terrorism.

Bush said the war in Iraq and efforts to stop North Korea&#39;s (search) nuclear program had sent a clear message to countries such as Libya that they must abandon weapons programs.

Libya&#39;s decision to dismantle its weapons program was first announced Friday in London by British Prime Minister Tony Blair (search). Bush spoke minutes later, saying if Libya followed through with its commitment, "its good faith can be returned."

In an apparent warning to Iran and North Korea, Bush said, "I hope other leaders will find an example" in Libya&#39;s decision to acknowledge that it had tried to develop such weapons and in its commitment to end the effort.

Several of the democRATic nominees for President chimed in:

Howard Dean: "This in no way makes America safer."

Heir Hitlery Clinton: "Not all the American people support this."

John Kerry: "This is just another example of why this President is a misreable failure"

Wesley Clark: "Were I President this would&#39;ve happened 20 years ago."

Huge win on so many fronts for President Bush and Prime Minister Blair. Grab some popcorn, sit back and get ready to laugh your asses off boys -- the satiric spin put forth by Come Back above promises to pale in comparison to what the Loony (not to mention punch drunk and disoriented) Left will do to spin this news.

Originally posted by jets5ever@Dec 22 2003, 04:27 PM This is without question a positive development for this country.

There is no way to spin it otherwise.

It didn&#39;t just happen. It didn&#39;t happen because of France. It didn&#39;t happen because of the UN.

It&#39;s happening because President Bush had the balls to enforce 13 years of Saddam flaunting UN resolutions while hiding behind the skirts of the UN and peaceniks the world over.

One of the most feasome ME dictators (and regimes), reduced to a lice-ridden, bowery bum and a coward for the whole world to see. And it didn&#39;t happen thru Bill Clinton, it wouldn&#39;t have happened with Al Gore, Howard Dean or any other democrit of note.

The liberals cried about Reagan pushing the red button. Instead of listening to them, he stood firm against the Soviet Union and now they and the Cold War no longer exist. He may have saved millions of lives just by being tough and firm.

The same goes for GWB and he too may have saved millions of lives just by being tough and firm.

TRIPOLI, Libya (CNN) -- Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, in an exclusive interview with CNN, acknowledged Monday that the war in Iraq may have played a role in his decision to dismantle his country&#39;s weapons of mass destruction programs.

He also told CNN&#39;s Andrea Koppel that though his country has certain programs and machines, it has no chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear arms.

"We have not these weapons," he said, adding that the programs he is prepared to dismantle "would have been for peaceful purposes -- but nevertheless we decided to get rid of them completely.

"There are many rumors, propaganda," he said.

The interview in Tripoli came three days after President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair announced that following months of secret meetings with U.S. and British officials Libya had agreed to dismantle it programs and allow U.N. weapons inspectors access to key sites. (Full story)

Gadhafi said the inspectors would see "we don&#39;t have anything to hide."

Hans Blix, former chief U.N. weapons inspector, said he imagined "Gadhafi could have been scared by what he saw happen in Iraq." (Full story)

Asked about his decision, Gadhafi acknowledged that the Iraq war may have influenced him, but he insisted he wanted to focus on the "positive."

He said the world is a changed place in which his country can feel safe without weapons of mass destruction.

A Bush administration official said Libya&#39;s nuclear weapons program was "much further advanced" than U.S. and British intelligence had thought, and included centrifuges and a uranium enrichment program, all necessary components in making a nuclear weapon. (Full story)

U.S. officials said Libya also has a stockpile of chemical weapons and dual-use facilities that could be used to create biological weapons.

The Libyans said they no longer have programs to produce chemical or biological weapons and that they have a largely dormant program to develop medium-range missiles based on Scud technology.

CIA and British intelligence officials met with Gadhafi and other senior Libyan officials as the three governments negotiated the deal under which the Libyan government would give up its weapons of mass destruction programs, U.S. officials said.

CIA officials also visited key sites in Libya during a nine-month period of negotiations that started with meetings in various European capitals.

According to Jane&#39;s, a defense publication based in London, England, U.S. intelligence officials believed China was helping Libya develop its existing Al-Fatah missile program and that the Libyans were seeking North Korean long-range missile technology.

Gadhafi told CNN that other countries have set a positive example by dismantling weapons of mass destruction programs peacefully. He said he hopes other nations will follow his action.

BTW: While George Bush takes care of terrorists around the world, two of the idiot eight who constantly berate our President can&#39;t get their stories straight on who-said-what-about-the vice presidency they have no chance of attaining&#33; :lol:

Originally posted by Come Back to NY@Dec 23 2003, 12:08 AM TRIPOLI, Libya (CNN) -- Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, in an exclusive interview with CNN, acknowledged Monday that the war in Iraq may have played a role in his decision to dismantle his country&#39;s weapons of mass destruction programs.

Hans Blix, former chief U.N. weapons inspector, said he imagined "Gadhafi could have been scared by what he saw happen in Iraq." (Full story)

Asked about his decision, Gadhafi acknowledged that the Iraq war may have influenced him, but he insisted he wanted to focus on the "positive."

Let me get this straight...........after Gadhafi admits what happened in Iraq influenced his decision......the immortal Hans Blix chimes in with breaking news that he " imagined " that may well be the case.....what a genius &#33;.....